Norwood honors veterans at Victory Park Memorial Day ceremony

NORWOOD, Ohio — Hundreds of residents, veterans and city officials gathered at Victory Park in Norwood for a Memorial Day ceremony that included prayers, remarks from Mayor Tommy Williams, addresses by veterans and a poem reading.

The ceremony centered on honoring service members who “made the ultimate sacrifice” and supporting families of those currently serving overseas, Mayor Tommy Williams said. Williams noted a municipal police department employee who has been deployed overseas and asked the crowd to remember families who shoulder deployments’ burdens.

“We honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice; we honor those and their families who are struggling every day while their loved ones are defending our country,” Mayor Tommy Williams said.

The event was organized in part by American Legion 123 in Norwood. An American Legion representative welcomed attendees and thanked local volunteers who help maintain the park’s memorial elements, including cannons, a tank, a pathway and markers for MIAs.

General Tom O’Brien, introduced by the mayor, spoke about national service and ongoing deployments, referencing recent conflicts abroad and local troops. He recalled attending a Vietnam Veterans ceremony in Eden Park and praised community ceremonies as important reminders of service and sacrifice. “All gave some; some gave all,” O’Brien said, quoting a line he associated with a song he heard en route to the ceremony.

Poet Margaret Weymier read a memorial poem she said resonates with the day’s purpose. In a separate remembrance, a veteran speaking about outreach and fundraising described plans to bring the Vietnam Rolling Wall to Norwood in September and said the display would require around-the-clock guarding while on site.

“We have written a letter to the Norwood Board of Education asking for permission to put it in the Norwood practice field,” the veteran said, asking for volunteers and donations and providing an address and phone number for contributions and coordination. The speaker asked those who can to make checks out to the Newark District Department Veterans Fund and mail them to 2200 Adams Avenue, Norwood, Ohio 45212, and offered a contact phone number listed at the ceremony.

Another attendee who had participated in the Rolling Thunder ride in Washington, D.C., described the national event and said large public rituals like that and local ceremonies demonstrate public support for veterans.

The program closed with a benediction. After the ceremony, American Legion 123 hosted a cookout at 5129 Montgomery Road, the group said.

The ceremony combined formal remarks by city officials with speeches by veterans and community members and concluded with requests for local support for veterans’ events and displays. No formal city actions or votes were taken at the event.